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Die Prinzen (The Princes)

Die Prinzen (pron. DEE PRINT-sen)
With 14 gold records, six platinums, and over five million recordings sold, the "Princes" are one of the most popular German pop bands of all time. Before they became Die Prinzen, the group's members were all in the Thomanerchor of the Thomaskirche (St. Thomas Church) in Leipzig, which is one reason they specialize in a capella music (singing without instrumental accompaniment).

In the 1980s the band's members were Sebastian Krumbiegel, Wolfgang Lenk, Jens Sembner, and Henri Schmidt. The lyrics of their songs are usually satiric and humorous, with tongue-in-cheek criticism of the German government and German society. In 1990 the band's album "Das Leben ist grausam," and the singles "Gabi und Klaus" and "Millionär" were big hits. The band gained even more recognition when it toured with Germany's "Rock-Opa" Udo Lindenberg in 1992. Their second album, "Küssen verboten," with its title hit song, sold well. In later albums the band also added an instrumental techno sound to their voices. After a lull in the late 1990s, Die Prinzen regained their popularity in Germany with the popular song "Olli Kahn," referring to Germany's World Cup star goalie Oliver Kahn.

The band has done concert tours in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Luxembourg. In the past some of their albums and songs were available in the U.S. from the Apple iTunes Store, but check for current availability. Albums: "Hardchor" (2004) and "Monarchie in Germany" (2003). - See our article on Downloading German Songs from the U.S. iTunes Music Store.